You’d think it’d be a foregone conclusion–Freddy Vs. Jason was a big hit with slasher fans, taking in nearly four and a half times its shooting budget worldwide–so why is a sequel in nearly a constant state of flux?  Well, looking at the history suggests there’s some serious problems in concept, and it may be Freddy Vs. Jason’s own success that’s to blame.  Let’s take a closer look.

First off, we can all pretty much agree that playing it straight–i.e. a Freddy vs. Jason matchup–will not be as well received the second time.  Oh, sure, that first time was great and it was solidly done, but there’s an undeniable novelty factor that went into that first match.  If they try it again, they’ll lose the novelty factor while having to invent yet another reason for the two to brawl.  Plus, the outcome will have to be inevitably similar–Freddy can’t beat Jason in the dream world because Jason’s incapable of dying for any extended length of time.  Let’s face it–they had to cobble together a completely ludicrous canon-breaker just to give Freddy half a chance.

For those crying foul, be reasonable–Freddy Vs. Jason postulates that Jason is hydrophobic.  But previous Friday the 13th installments showed Jason walking the entire length of Crystal Lake.  THROUGH the lake.  If water balked him so badly that that trickle of dream-water Freddy put up would stop him cold, would he be walking THROUGH ENTIRE LAKES?  No, clearly not.  In fact, how precisely is Jason slogging through the swamp carrying Freddy’s head at the end if he’s so hydrophobic?

At any rate, the converse is equally true–Freddy can’t beat Jason in the REAL world either.  Freddy’s been bested several times by the simple expedient of hauling his ass physically out of the dream state and into the real world, and that’s by regular people.

Let alone by an enormous juggernaut with superhuman strength that’s repeatedly survived small arms fire.

So Freddy needs an edge.  Or at the very least, a distraction sufficient enough to generate the kind of ultraviolence necessary to stop Jason for any length of time, say, feeding him feet-first into a woodchipper.  The nature of this distraction seems to be the major sticking point for Freddy Vs. Jason 2, and where most of the problem is coming from.

At first, Evil Dead stalwart Ash was looked to, but after numerous legal tangles, was overthrown.  This is probably for the best anyway, especially given that Evil Dead 4 looks to be a possibility for like the first time EVER and thus we want the character license nice and freed up to lay waste.

Fast forward to the modern day, and a new and interesting possibility emerges–Michael Myers.  This is a choice that should certainly raise eyebrows; Myers has shown himself on numerous occasions to be as clearly bulletproof as Jason himself and as resistant to pain and injury.  Though lacking Voorhees’ primal strength–chances are Jason could throw Michael across a room–Myers definitely doesn’t lack any of Voorhees’ tenacity.  These two silent monsters could likely batter away at each other for hours and probably break knives off in each other without so much as a whimper, and with the wild-card of a real-world Krueger roaming about, well, all bets are quite thoroughly off.

Jason taking on the duo of Freddy and Michael could be a match even for him, but woe betide the often arrogant Krueger if he tries to sell out Michael for a premature win.

Regardless, the possibilities associated with Freddy Vs. Jason 2 are more than enough to have even the most lackadaisical fans on their feet and cheering.  That’s why I’m keeping both eyes open for news on this one.

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